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Last Call For Comey Island, Con't
ABC ran an hour-long interview with former FBI Director James Comey last night ahead of Comey's book release on Tuesday, and it pretty much confirmed every thought I've had about the guy:
I'm just thinking if there was anyone in America who should have known that Donald Trump was an unethical sack of garbage, it should have been the *Director of the FBI* and yet Jim Comey was apparently *repeatedly surprised* by just how much of a cartoonish crook Trump was
— Zandar Wakandar (@ZandarVTS) April 16, 2018
Comey also says that if given the choice, he still would have informed the world eleven days before the 2016 election of the Clinton e-mails on Anthony Weiner's laptop, a bungled mess of an investigation reveal that essentially cost Clinton the race.
My take on Comey hasn't changed, he's self-serving and is using defending the "honor" of the FBI as an excuse to violate FBI rules and absolve himself of being the Judas goat that basically elected Donald Trump in the last week of October 2016.
To save you the trouble of reading the transcript, he takes shots at everyone on the way out the door: Trump, Bob Mueller (who was his boss at one point), Rod Rosenstein, Hillary Clinton, David Petraeus, Loretta Lynch, Michael Flynn, Republicans in Congress, Democrats in Congress, the American people, you name it. Everyone's at fault here except James Comey, according to James Comey anyway.
Finally he compares Trump to a forest fire that damages America but clears out the old to make way for the new and hopes America will recover, but not if Democrats impeach Trump, which will do more damage to the country and "let the American voters off the hook" for electing the guy in the first place.
The real victim of all this is James Comey though, at least that's his view. For that, I'll never forgive the man.
You shouldn't either. He's right about Trump being an unfit mob boss, but he's only saying what's obvious now in the harsh glare of the spotlight that Comey himself wanted in order to save his own ass.
History won't be kind to either man.
StupidiTags(tm): 2016 Election, GIANT BRASS BALLS, James Comey, Trump Regime, Village Stupidity
The Greitens Report
Hey guys, Bon Tindle. here. It's been a while, and I'm sorry that these are the circumstances that bring me back. Zandar graciously asked me to help cover the shame of my home state, Missouri.
[Zandar here. Bon Tindle has graciously agreed to write about Missouri GOP Gov. Eric Greitens for ZVTS as she lives in the state, so please let her know what you think in the comments!]
After reading the entire report about our governor, I was upset for a variety of reasons. As a woman who has been targeted by a man in power, I recognized the setup. The way they test victims, and make sure they are able to terrorize them into silence. The stalking and unwanted appearances.
And, of course, the violence.
This story has a lot of angles, and speaks to a lot of topics. I am going to focus on the victim and consent right now, and circle back to other subjects in later posts.
It is important to note that the victim did not consent to the acts that took place. She was sometimes not even given the chance to give or revoke consent because she was not in control of her situation, such as when the photograph was allegedly taken. Other times, she complied because it brought her closer to escape. In testimony deemed credible, the victim was not a willing party to the actions that took place.
That's called rape, and there is no backing away from it. The blackmail is an enormous ethical violation as well, but the way the rape was engineered is thoroughly disturbing.
But there are other violations, as well. The media grabbed this story and took off, and though the fact was known that the victim did not initiate the story, very few stopped to consider what that means. It means this story was not driven by the victim, and was likely against her wishes. It was broken by her ex-husband, who drove the narrative for the first several days. It involved a recorded call and the victim had no idea her words were recorded. While that is legal in Missouri, that doesn't mean it is ethical when used to further victimize. Thoughtless posters on social media poked fun without considering it came at a victim's expense. These are issues that also need to be addressed and filed appropriately.
Good journalists note these things and question the motives of a source. I am very proud to say the Springfield News-Leader was sensitive to this throughout the coverage. They also voiced an opinion that the governor must go, in light of what we know. For the record, I could not agree more.
Make no mistake, there is some support for Greitens among the most loyal, but it is dying quickly. Political allies are dropping one by one, but as the story unfolds and the victim gains credibility, most people I have interviewed believe there is a dead end ahead, whether through resignation or involuntary process is the only question.
I will continue to cover this, and as the story develops bring it over here and share the local knowledge and response.
Posted by Unknown Permalink 4:00:00 PM No comments: Somebody Noticed!
StupidiTags(tm): Bon The Geek, Local Stupidity
The New York Times editorial board finally makes the call on Trump that they should have made more than 18 months ago.
News reports point to a growing possibility that President Trump may act to cripple or shut down an investigation by the nation's top law-enforcement agencies into his campaign and administration. Lawmakers need to be preparing now for that possibility because if and when it comes to pass, they will suddenly find themselves on the edge of an abyss, with the Constitution in their hands.
Make no mistake: If Mr. Trump takes such drastic action, he will be striking at the foundation of the American government, attempting to set a precedent that a president, alone among American citizens, is above the law. What can seem now like a political sideshow will instantly become a constitutional crisis, and history will come calling for Mr. Hatch and his colleagues.
For months, investigators have been examining whether Mr. Trump's campaign conspired with the Russian government to undermine American democracy, and whether the president misused his power by obstructing justice in an effort to end that investigation.
Until the last few weeks, Mr. Trump had shown restraint, by his standards, anyway. He and his lawyers cooperated with investigators. Mr. Trump never tweeted directly about Robert Mueller, the special counsel, and spoke about him publicly only when asked.
Alas, that whiff of higher executive function is gone. Mr. Trump is openly attacking both Mr. Mueller and Rod Rosenstein, the deputy attorney general, appointed by Mr. Trump himself. Mr. Rosenstein is overseeing the Russia investigation and signing off on Mr. Mueller's actions.
Of course, this president has been known to huff and puff, to bluff and bluster, and he may be doing no more than that now. He may choose not to fire either man. We know he has already twice told his aides he wanted Mr. Mueller fired, only to be talked out of such rash action.
But if the president does move against the investigators, it will be up to Congress to affirm the rule of law, the separation of powers and the American constitutional order. The miserable polarization and partisan anger that have been rising in American life for decades will hit a new crescendo, and that will present congressional Republicans with a heavy burden indeed.
They go on to plead with congressional Republicans, starting with Senate president pro tempore and Judiciary Committee chair Orrin Hatch, to do the right thing for America's sake should Trump make the move we all at this point expect him to make on Rosenstein and Mueller (and possibly Jeff Sessions being taken out by the ensuing collateral damage as well).
I wouldn't hold my breath on Hatch doing anything at all. Mitch McConnell will see to that. Paul Ryan in the House? Well, he's heading for the hills. Don't expect anything there either.
This was always going to be up to Republicans in Congress, and there's nothing that I've seen that makes it even remotely feasible that they will choose country over party. Perhaps in January with a new House and Senate controlled by the Dems, but the one we have now, no way.
And let's not forget we have an entire media empire devoted to keeping Trump in power no matter how far he goes.
The 2018 elections may be our best hope, and even then by the time they roll around it may already be too late.
StupidiTags(tm): 2018 Elections, Criminal Stupidity, GOP Stupidity, Legal Stupidity, Robert Mueller, Rod Rosenstein, Trump Regime, Vote Like Your Country Depends On It
Former First Lady Barbara Bush is in failing health according to a family spokesperson, the 92-year-old matriarch is forgoing more hospitalization and instead is focusing on "comfort care".
Britain's foreign minister says that the US, Britain, and France will consider all options should the Assad regime use chemical weapons again in Syria.
Likewise, Russian President Vladimir Putin warns that another strike by the US in Syria will "cause global chaos" as the Trump regime is expected to announce new sanctions against Syria's suppliers.
The US Supreme Court will take up a case this week on whether or not states can force all online retailers to collect sales taxes, not just businesses that have a physical presence in a state.
Energy Secretary Rick Perry appears eager to help coal and nuclear plant companies out with an emergency bailout order that could cost taxpayers billions.


I will be running the London Marathon on April 28th. This will be my 17th marathon and on this occasion I am raising funds for Balbriggan Educate Together National School. My daughter Ciara and my son Harry attend the school. Funds raised will go to the Parent Association, who in turn support various school events throughout the year such as Get Active Week.
Best of luck Liam in London!
Best of luck! I'll say a prayer for you!!


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Восточно-африканская медоносная пчела () — подвид медоносной пчелы.

Происходит из районов центральной, южной и восточной Африки, хотя на крайнем юге его замещает капская медоносная пчела (Apis mellifera capensis). Этот подвид считается одним из предков широко расселяющегося по американскому континенту гибрида, известного как африканизированные пчёлы, часто называемого «пчёлами-убийцами».

Внешний вид
Внешне восточноафриканская пчела очень похожа на европейскую пчелу, однако характеризуется немного меньшим размером. Средняя длина тела рабочей особи составляет 19 мм. Верхняя часть насекомого покрыта пухом, брюшко чёрное.

Медоносные пчёлы

redpajama_set_name: RedPajamaWikipedia


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During a hearing Thursday, Supervising Deputy Atty. Gen. Jay M. Goldman argued that public access to all portions of executions was not required by law.
Seeborg noted that he was aware of one botched execution where medical assistance had been given to the prisoner.
Lawyers said he was referring to the botched execution of Clayton Darrell Lockett in Oklahoma in 2014. Three minutes after Lockett was declared unconscious, he raised his head and spoke and attempted to rise from the table.
One of the doctors present stopped the execution, but Lockett suffered heart failure several minutes later.
Goldman asked whether the media also wanted to ride in the ambulance with an inmate if he or she were taken to the hospital or to view the inmate's last meal.
Christopher S. Sun, representing the media, said the suit was simply intended to ensure that what happens in the execution chamber is made public.
State regulation now requires a curtain on the viewing window to the execution chamber to be closed and the public address system turned off if the inmate does not die after receiving three doses of the lethal chemicals.
The news media lawsuit asks for an injunction to prevent the state from carrying out executions unless they are truly public.
The suit argues that regulations established by the Department of Corrections and Rehabilitation deny the public's right to know whether execution staff properly prepare and administer the lethal chemical; the name of the chemical used; the number of doses; how the inmate reacts to each dose; and how effectively the execution team performs — particularly if the execution does not proceed as planned.
Seeborg did not say when he would rule.
California's last execution occurred in January 2006. Executions cannot resume again until other legal challenges are resolved.
But supporters of the death penalty said those hurdles will soon be overcome because of voter passage of a 2016 ballot measure intended to speed up executions.
California governors cannot commute death sentences of inmates convicted of multiple felonies without the approval of four of seven justices of the state Supreme Court.
11:50 a.m.: This article was updated with the judge rejecting the state's motion to dismiss the lawsuit.


DESCRIPTION: What a long arduous journey. I entered the Lincoln Woods parking area at 7:00 AM while my friend Mark sent Bob ahead and waited while I dressed for the 15 degree temperatures, skies were blue and I was hoping to see the temperature increase throughout the day, it never did. We made quick work of the well trodden 2.6 mile Lincoln Woods trail catching Bob just before the Black Pond junction. We took the Black Pond trail and bushwhack to avoid 2 dangerous stream crossings of Franconia and Lincoln brook. The Black Pond trail was much more narrow however heavily used. I was pleased to see the Black Pond bushwhack was also packed out by an AMC group of 10 with an earlier start time. We leap-frogged a group of 3 (who I recognised as regular posters on a NH Hiking forum) throughout the bushwhack. The short lived excitement of hitting the Lincoln Brook trail and solace of paralleling the semi-frozen Lincoln Brook soon deteriorated to a long monotonous walk.
The AMC group bushwhacked the Southern slope of Owl's head known as the Brutus Bushwhack and we continued North to the base of the Owl's head slide. There are no trail signs here but it's an obvious junction to the attentive.
The base of the Owl's head slide had been traveled withing the past 48 hours and while not completely broken out, wasn't hidden. The exposed slide is steep climbing 1500 vertical feet in approximately .7 miles however the views towards the Western flank of Franconia Ridge are spectacular and the best views on the trip. The most difficult aspect of hiking the slide was the top 1/3 crawling on hands and knees through thick stabbing branches of fir trees. We encountered the AMC group and 3 hikers mentioned previously on the summit ridge. The official summit is currently marked with a small cairn however loose lips sink ships. Don't tell the Pemigewasset Rangers.
We descended via the now-broken out bushwhack the larger group ascended.
Lincoln Woods Trail - Black Pond Trail = 2.6 Mi.
Black Pond Trail - Black Pond = 0.8 Mi.
Black pond bushwhack - Lincoln Brook trail = ~1.0 Mi.
Lincoln Brook Trail - Owl's Head Slide = 3.2 Mi.
Owl's head slide - Summit = ~1.0 Mi.
NOTES / COMMENTS: Why hike this remote peak with limited views in the middle of the Pemigewasset Wilderness? Because it's there!


Local History of Cuba Twp. and Flint Creek School District 89.
Description History - Cuba Township, Flint Creek School - Lake Co., Ill.
SourceSummary Seventh and eighth grade students throughout Lake County compiled the 1918 School History notebooks in celebration of the Illinois Centennial. The histories feature photographs and accounts from students and teachers at the one-room schoolhouses. In addition, information on the settlement history of the area is often included, along with photos of early families, businesses and residences.
Description Local History of Cuba Twp. and Flint Creek School District 89.
FullText Local History of Cuba Twp. and Flint Creek School District 89.


Well, we are a year or more into our fledgling new friendship and I have laughed uproariously, smiled until my face cracked, hung out and did nothing, but hang out, dined, swam, gardened, shopped and chatted about everything under the sun. I also felt confident enough in our newly found connection to let down my guard and confide in you a little. You have confided in me too. We shared secrets and we shared ambitions and we just shared.
It all sounds idyllic, and in many ways, for me it has been. Making new friends used to come so easily to me. I was open and trusting to a fault, but not anymore. Oh! I definitely seek out new friends, it's just that nowadays I am more cautious and particular about who I spend my time with. You see, I've had some absolutely rotten friendships in the past. People might think this is an exaggeration, but I can tell you stories that will make you dream of monsters.
I am careful not to make my new friends pay for the monster's mistakes, and that's pretty important for those of us in recovery from abusive relationships with others.
You can not allow the monster's dysfunction to become your dysfunction.
How do you keep this from happening? I'm no expert, but I can tell you how I got through this and that was to finally understand and appreciate what a real friend looked like and felt like. When you're wading through the destruction and havoc left behind from any connection with a malignant personality disordered person, finding out who your real friends are can be quite a task. My best advice is to continue to work on yourself and the genuine folks will slowly start to become apparent. Like they say, the cream always rises to the top!
I am a champion of letting a friend know what I've experienced with toxic people. Not only does it give them a heads-up, it also protects me from witnessing one of my friends suffer the same fate that I did. Many things I will keep to myself. This is not one of them. If the person wanted me to say nice things about them, they should have behaved better.
The most important task ahead will be making, setting and abiding by your own personal boundaries. You have to draw a line in the sand sometimes and this is going to be one of them. It's the best survival tip I can offer. If you check out the Explore Other Posts section here on my blog, you'll find one entitled Personal Boundaries Primer. I'd suggest having a gander at some of those posts and follow my journey to freedom, as you seek yours.
Good luck out there and remember; just because you know a lot of assholes, it doesn't mean you have to be friends with them.
This entry was posted in All kinds of Advice and tagged All kinds of Advice, Behavior, dysfunctional friends, family, Friendship, Madeline Laughs, Personal boundaries, Relationships. Bookmark the permalink.


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Cheap Garth Brooks Tickets in Baltimore at the Royal Farms Arena: Ticket Down Slashes Garth Brooks Ticket Prices at Royal Farms Arena (formerly 1st Mariner Arena and Baltimore Arena) in Baltimore, MD
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Ticket Down is a reputable source of authentic Garth Brooks tickets at the Royal Farms Arena in Baltimore, Maryland. At this point in the career of Garth Brooks there aren't many cities that he can say he has never performed in. One of those cities only has a few months left for this distinction as Brooks recently announced that he and his wife, Trisha Yearwood, would be performing in Baltimore, MD at the Royal Farms Arena. The couple will perform on Friday, January 29th and Sunday, January 30th. As in other cities, there is always the chance that Garth will add more dates due to fan demand.
The Garth Brooks World Tour has been in full force since September, 2014 and shows no signs of slowing down. The excitement from the fans towards the tour has made it easy for Brooks to keep adding dates and these two dates in Baltimore were the latest additions to the schedule. The tour has seen Brooks perform in most states across the United States and, depending on where the show was, featured some special guests that helped Brooks tear the house down. His set list throughout the tour has featured a solid mix of new and old including "The River," "Two Pina Coladas," "The Beaches of Cheyenne," "The Thunder Rolls," and "People Loving People."
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redpajama_set_name: RedPajamaCommonCrawl


The number of people coming forward with cyber crime complaints is on a significant rise. "In a year after the cyber cell of Pune police was started in July 2003 we had received only nine complaints of cyber crime. There is a manifold rise as in the year 2008, we have received 2007 cyber crime complaints," said Deputy Commissioner of Police (cyber cell) Rajendra Dahale, during the opening ceremony of 'Cop Tech"'forum at Pune police commissionerate on Tuesday.
Police commissioner Satyapal Singh then signed a memorandum of understanding (MoU) with NASSCOM, while launching the "Cop Tech" forum.
Pratap Reddy, an IPS officer who an advisor (cyber security) to NASSCOM said that this was the first MoU of its kind in the country. "Partnership between the police and industry is appreciated," Reddy said. While Singh said that police would like to learn fast and more from on cyber security through the "Cop Tech" forum. Singh suggested that meetings of 'Cop Tech' forum members and police should be held every month. "Making the society cyber safe is a challenge. We would like to learn more on cyber safety. There is no time to waste," Singh said. Rajiv Vaishnav, vice president of NASSCOM and Anand Deshpande, founder and managing director of Persistent Systems Ltd also spoke.


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Three Ways to Support a Circular Economy
By Mollie Williams
Kết quả xổ số hôm nay What does it take to achieve a circular economy? Can waste be viewed as a valuable resource to fuel new products? How do you catalyze a shift in the global system that is equally attractive for industries, consumers, and the world at large?
The , which was sponsored in part by Milliken, addressed these questions as more than 400 thought leaders gathered to discuss solutions that eliminate waste plaguing our global system—from food waste to discarded plastics.
During a CEO panel on leading disruption, Milliken's president and CEO Halsey Cook joined Waste Management CEO Jim Fish and Alliance to End Plastic Waste CEO Jacob Duer to discuss barriers and enablers to achieving a circular economy. This conversation, which centered on plastic waste specifically, spanned collection challenges at the beginning of the recycling process to sorting, selling, and then using the recycled plastics to manufacture new products.
Here are three actionable steps gleaned from the discussion to help build a circular economy.
1. Communicate the value of waste. Various forms of waste can become valuable inputs for new products and purposes. More and more products are being made with recycled content. Increasing the use of recycled content, however, requires an understanding at the household level that waste does indeed have a value. This way people see a purpose in their individual recycling efforts.
2. Champion scientific-driven solutions. Technologies creating materials like useful packaging, food storage, and healthcare products have moved faster than our ability to deal with the waste associated with the end of life for these items.
Just as science was key in introducing plastics, science plays a key role in developing more sustainable plastics and circular solutions. Cook noted that as materials science experts, scientists at Milliken have been pivoting, asking how Milliken can facilitate and enable a large-scale recycling effort. As a result, Milliken has been curating a portfolio of solutions that assist with incorporating recycled plastics of all types into new consumer goods over and over again.
3. Ask for and purchase products made with recycled content.Kết quả xổ số hôm nay Economic considerations drive business, with supply-and-demand principles being chief among them. When customers ask for new products or new features, businesses rise to the occasion and introduce those things. The same holds true with eco-conscious products—when consumers show they are willing to pay for smarter, more sustainable products, businesses are encouraged to invest in those solutions.
Kết quả xổ số hôm nayCook further highlighted that many consumer-oriented companies are "making big declarations regarding recycled content, and that is going to create opportunities in the future for more recycling." When consumers in turn continue to push for this, it will help result in more recycling streams. "The economics change when the consumer says this is important enough for me that I'll pay a higher price for the product," Cook continued. "Consumers are demanding this needs to change."
This National Geographic Forum galvanized our belief that these critical conversations will lead to sustainable solutions to better our world. As Halsey Cook said, "Closing the loop on waste requires a holistic plan and the courage to act."
Kết quả xổ số hôm nayAs a company, we are taking up the mantle and investing our energies into helping the plastics circular economy develop and thrive through big ideas, smart innovations, and mindful actions. We hope you'll join us in this important endeavor.


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$800 million phosphate mine approved in Mt Isa
April 13, 2011 Newss11_admin Jessica Burke
An $800 million mining lease in the Mount Isa area has been approved and is expected to create more than 1300 jobs and inject a further $200 million a year into the local economy.
Legend International Holdings was given approval for a second mining lease in the North West Queensland Minerals Province and Premier Anna Bligh said it was a positive indication that investors were confident in mining and resources in Queensland.
"With Legend's estimate of almost 200 million tonnes of mineral reserves in the area, we are looking at a mine with an operational life of 60 years," she said.
"The north-west is important to the whole Queensland economy. That's why we're taking steps to ensure the resources and mining industry can continue to develop in the area.
"Rigorous checks and balances are in place but we've made an effort to reduce red tape to make sure developments that check all the right boxes can be up and running quickly."
Local government is also welcoming the development of the mine, with Mount Isa MP Betty Kiernan saying the benefits from the project would be widespread and varied.
"With Legend also planning to build a fertiliser plant in Mount Isa and export the product via the Port of Townsville, this will keep the North-West on the international map for many, many years," Kierman said.
"A lot of people in this part of Queensland depend on mining for a job and I'm pleased to see those opportunities keep rolling in."
Legend International Holding project manager Ed Walker said has applied for a staged development on its two granted mining leases and a third lease covering the project.
"Mine production is planned to start first with high-grade ore from the Paradise North deposit for the first five years," Mr Walker said.
"The larger Paradise South deposit is then planned to provide high quality phosphatic rock for the fertiliser plant planned for Mount Isa.
"We're also looking at upgrading the production of fertiliser product to 1.2 million tonnes per annum."
Legend still needs to complete an Environmental Impact Study (EIS) and get approval from the Mount Isa City Council.
"After operating in the Mount Isa region for over three years, Legend realises that understanding our environmental impact is essential to the Mount Isa community," Mr Walker said.
"Legend is committed to protecting the water quality in the Leichhardt River catchment as a key priority."
Barrick CEO given the chop
Another miner buys in to marijuana
The year in review: 2014 in focus
Kalgoorlie Super Pit rock falls lead to more job casualties
← FMG shipment down for March quarter Darwin Port faces copper spill prosecution →


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CA in fresh attempt to fill Director General post, 21 months later
By Kepha Muiruri For Citizen Digital Published on: May 18, 2021 02:44 (EAT)
The Communication Authority of Kenya (CA) has made a fresh bid to fill its vacant Director General position 21 months on since the contested exit of Francis Wangusi in August 2019.
In a re-advertisement posted on local dailies on Tuesday, the ICT sector regulator has invited interested applicants to apply and submit their applications by June 17.
The latest bid to fill the post comes on the back of multiple interlocked contests on the succession of Wangusi whose second term closed in the middle of August 2019.
The board of the CA was for instance forced to install Director of Legal Services Mercy Wanjau as its new DG on interim capacity following a suit challenging its composition.
Activist Okiya Omtatah had for instance argued the regulator's board was not fully constituted while further asserting amendments to the Kenya Information Communications Act (KICA) had allowed for the handpicking of appointees.
The CA has subsequently sought to fill the leadership post in May and September last year but run into similar headwinds.
For instance, May's advertisement was squashed by the Labour Court after an application by the Information Communication Technology Association of Kenya (ICTAK) which decried an un-procedural recruitment drive.
ICTAK argued that the vacancy notice discriminated against certain cadres of eligible applicants.
In its fresh advertisement, the CA has 'softened' the eligibility criteria for applicants by for instance reducing the minimum education qualifications.
An applicant will for instance be required to only be a holder of a bachelor's degree in the relevant ICT field from a previous Masters Degree requirement.
Candidates are nevertheless required to have at least 10 years of experience and should have served in a position of senior management for a period of at least five years.
The successful candidate shall earn a four year contract, renewable once, subject to satisfactory performance.


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I couldn't find any feedback regarding these wheel arches I always saw for sale, so I thought I'd buy them as see for myself. Well basically they're garbage!
Yikes. I have never seen those ones before or up close.
Wow. Those look pretty bad. I bought a complete fron set for my 04 r50 from China. Fit great.


text:
Lectures on Temple and Text
The Style and Aesthetics of Indian Erotic Temple Sculpture
Shivdasani Conference 2007
Dr David Smith
Session 10 of the 2007 Shivdasani Conference.
Related: Aesthetics, Temple and Text
Yajna and Puja: A Comparison of the Ritual Archetypes
Dr Natalia R. Lidova
Session 8 of the 2007 Shivdasani Conference.
The correlation between yajña and puja may well be one of the most complicated problems in Indology. Yajña and puja are known to have been mutually counterposed in the Indian tradition. At any rate, they were topical in different periods of its evolution. Yajña held pride of place as a solemn rite in the Vedic time, while puja became widespread in the post-Vedic era to become the central ritual of Hinduism. Many scholars cling to the idea of a Vedic origin of puja, regarding it as a yajña which went through specific transformations, though no substantiated explanations of these supposed changes have yet appeared. Perhaps, the only attempt of this kind was made by J.A.B. van Buitenen, who hypothetically traced puja to the Pravargya, a Vedic ritual, which included the soma offering. Based on a similarity of the purely external aspects of ritualism, his concept failed to win broad recognition but, on the contrary, was subject to ample and well-deserved criticisms.
Attempts to compare yajña and puja have either emphasized the similarities between the two, or brought out the differences. Irrespective of this, they all proceeded from comparisons between the outward aspects of the ritual practice, with extremely vague results. A comparison of rituals appears to be destined for success only if it proceeds from a specific methodological approach, which allows comparison not only of the outward aspects of rites but ritual principles underlying them. Here, our task is reduced to the identification of what we may conventionally term the "ritual archetype" at the basis of yajña and puja. As I see it, the most salient features of a ritual archetype are determined by three principal aspects, which can be put into the form of three queries. The first, "Where?" pertains to the arrangement of the ritual space; the second, "How?" to the type of the offering; the third, "What for?" describes the ritual goals of the worship.
To bring out the ritual archetype of yajña, I proceeded from the Brahmanas, which characterized the principal conceptual bases of the Vedic ritualism, as well as the srauta- and sulba-sutras, which contained essential technical details of the actual ritual. The ritual archetype of puja was reconstructed on the basis of ritualistic chapters of the Natyasastra, the Atharvaveda Parisistas, the Sattvata Samhita, which preserved testimony of the ritualism of the Pancharatra, and the Saiva Agamas – the Ajita, the Raurava and the Mrgendra.
Related: Ritual, Temple and Text
The Indian Temple: Production, Place, Patronage
Dr Adam Hardy
In the forms of shrine, which developed between the 7th and 13th centuries, Hindu temples, conceived as divine bodies, embodied structured patterns of movement in their architectural compositions. Shrines are invested with a sense of centrifugal dynamism that appears to originate at the tip of the finial, or a point just above it, progressing downwards from this point and outwards from the vertical axis. Compositional elements are made to appear to multiply, to emerge and expand out from the body of the shrine, and out from one another, as interpenetrating elements differentiate themselves and come apart. As well as a spatial structure, a temple has a temporal one, of which a given spatial arrangement is a momentary glimpse, or rather, a succession of such glimpses. A series of elements, or of configurations of elements, can be sensed not so much as a chain of separate entities, but as the same thing seen several times, at different stages, evolving and proliferating. This pattern of growth is conveyed through clearly identifiable architectural means.
The same pattern of emergence, expansion, and proliferation expressed in a single temple is reflected in the development of architectural forms during the course of various traditions. This unfolding takes place both in the details and at the level of the whole composition. The effect observed in a single, developed temple, of one form putting forth another, which in turn emits another and so on, is brought about by a cumulative extrapolation and successive incorporation of temple designs: a new design springing from an old one, while preserving the old one within the new.
Analogies, or homologies, are striking when dynamic temple compositions are compared with certain recurrent religious and philosophical concepts. Patterns of emergence and growth, as if from an all-containing point, underlie a vision of creation, which is found repeatedly in many different guises. The manifestation or coming into being of the divine or of the universe is repeatedly understood as taking place through the sequential emergence, or successive bursting forth, of one form or principle from another.
This is not to say that such ideas gave rise to the architectural forms, or that the temple builders deliberately set out to embody these concepts: rather, it would seem, the forms and the ideas both spring from the same way of thinking, the same view of the world.
Related: Temple and Text
Textual Tradition and the Temples of Khajuraho
Dr Devangana Desai
There was a prolific temple building activity at Khajuraho in central India between CE 900-1150 under the patronage of the Candella Rajput princes and Jaina merchants. About 25 temples now survive. The master-architects (sutradharas) of Khajuraho followed the Visvakarma School of Vastu tradition, as evidenced from inscriptions. So far no actual manuscript is discovered from this site, but the texts of this School found from the neighbouring regions, and the religious texts such as the Puranas, Pancaratras and Saivagamas, dealing with ritual and religious action, help us understand and interpret the imagery of the Khajuraho temples.
The paper discusses the textual tradition followed by the Khajuraho architects in the context of the structural aspects of the temples, and the ornamentation of the wall and the door of the sanctum. It examines some important sculptural motifs such as apsaras (celestial maidens) and vyalas (griffins) in the context of texts as well as actual depiction. It presents some special features such as the juncture wall, linking the hall for devotees and the sanctum of the divinity, on which the architects expressed creative imageries. It surveys the placement of images and presents the temple as an ordered whole by showing the doctrinal unfolding in the graded iconic scheme of the Kandariya Mahadeva temple.
The paper proposes that though the Khajuraho architects stayed within the tradition of Vastu texts, they invented new images, new configurations and iconic schemes. Guided possibly by religious acaryas (preceptors), they made a creative use of traditional motifs to convey concepts in visual language.
Creating Religious Identity: The Archaeology of Early Temples in the Malaprabha Valley
Dr Himanshu Prabha Ray
The spectacular temple complexes of Aihole, Badami and Pattadakal located along the 25 kilometre long fertile valley of the Malaprabha river, (a tributary of the Krishna) in Bagalkot district have long been admired for their distinctive Karn Dravida architectural tradition and sculptural exuberance. It was along the Malaprabha river in north Karnataka that Pulakesi I established his capital at Vatapi or present Badami and built a fort on top of the sandstone cliff in c. 543 A.D. Thus the attempt by the early Chalukya rulers to establish a base in the fertile Malaprabha valley is undeniable. It is also evident that in the 7th-8th centuries AD, the Malaprabha valley acquired an identity that has continued to mould the lives of the communities both within and outside it. This identity included the demarcation of a territorial boundary within the enclosed terrain of the valley, adoption of a new mode of worship in the temple, the use of the Kannada language on coins and inscriptions and assumption of a sculptural programme based on the Epics and the Puranas.
The larger issue that this paper raises is the disjuncture in the study of the past as a result of colonial intervention. In the colonial period, many of the standing temple structures came to be studied in terms of style, architecture and sculpture, the emphasis being on chronology and political patronage. This not only altered our understanding of the structures from being abodes of god to objects of artistic appreciation, but it also redefined the nature of Indic religions. Religion came to be understood in terms of doctrine, which could only be comprehended through the texts rather than through practices and rituals. Once we shift the meaning of religion to its pre-Christian etymology, it is understood in terms of performing ancient ritual practices and paying homage to the gods. In keeping with this I suggest that pan-Indian religious and cultural practices, rituals and imagery formed the substratum of a self-perception and identity long before the Arab or European discovery of the term 'Hindu' in 14th-15th centuries AD and a judicious use of archaeological data provides evidence to unearth this identity.
Sacred Space and the Making of Monuments in Colonial Orissa
Dr Indra Sengupta
Confronting, dealing with and 'managing' sacred space was a task that the colonial government of India had set for itself from the early days of the rule of the English East India Company in Bengal and it continued to dominate official views of governing India down to the end of British rule in 1947. At the root of this was the understanding, derived largely from a heavily text-based European orientalist scholarship, of India as an essentially religious culture, characterised by mutually antagonistic religious groups. Thus, establishing hegemony could not, among other things, avoid negotiating space that was traditionally inhabited by religion.
The 'modern' (i.e. contemporary European) practice of monument-making and archaeological conservation, introduced by the colonial state in India and enshrined in the Government department of the Archaeological Survey of India (1861), by virtue of its claims as upholder of India's heritage and history almost automatically lent itself to such negotiations. This paper will focus on archaeological practice in temple restoration in colonial Orissa as one of the best examples of the negotiation of sacred space between the claims of colonial archaeology as the final authority on the 'monumental' remains of India's past and the various indigenous groups who one the one hand sought to profit from the conservation of religious architecture and on the other used sacred space to engage in confrontation and conflict, but also enter into negotiations with colonial archaeology.
Money of the Gods: The Religious Tokens of India
Dr Sanjay Garg
Numismatics and archaeology have always had a close relationship. Still in the study of archaeology and archaeological concepts, the discipline of numismatics is often relegated to a secondary importance. Though the use of religious tokens in India is not embedded in antiquity, it forms a part of the living traditions. The paper aims at consolidating numismatic research done so far on this topic and analyse this data in the context of other archaeological remains such as monuments and sculptures as well as religious texts.
It also seeks to re-emphasise the importance of numismatic objects like religious tokens for studying the cultural and religious aspects of the social life of our people.
Related: Numismatics, Temple and Text
The Social Impact of Hindu Temples in East Bengal under the Mughals
Dr Sandrine Gill
Paradoxically, in Bengal, most of the standing Hindu temples postdate the arrival of the Mughals, at the end of the 16th century. What significance did these Hindu landmarks have in the social and historical context? Where they simply commemorative, vindictive or did they compromise with the "hostile" rulers? How did these Hindu temples integrate landscapes with outstanding Muslim monuments?
The archaeology of the imposing Kantanagar temple in north Bengal, and many other shrines from different parts of Bengal provide a rich matter of thought. They are particularly interesting as they incorporate the traditional skills of local terracotta artisans and brick builders into a variety of iconographical and architectural creations deeply rooted in a specific social background.
The Ambika Temple at Jagat: A Biographical Sketch
Dr Parul Pandya-Dhar
The Ambika temple in Jagat village, about 50 km southeast of Udaipur in the western Indian State of Rajasthan, dates back to 961 AD. The temple has a simple but well-spelt iconological scheme. Its numerous fine sculptures are in an excellent state of preservation. Ambika temple is a Devi (goddess) temple, with images of Durga, Saptamatrikas and other female divinities sculpted on the walls and doorframes of the main temple and the adjunct halls. As the red flag on the sikhara and the congregation of devotees indicate, the temple is still being used for worship. The principal image of Devi presently placed in the garbha-griha (sanctum-sanctorum) though is not of the same date as the temple's construction and consecration but is a more recent image installed on the earlier pedestal and placed in front of the original parikara (image-frame). Since when do we have evidence of the association of this site at Jagat with Devi worship? What does archaeological evidence and the iconography of the temple sculptures reveal about the nature of goddess worship at this site? What are the textual injunctions regarding worship in a temple when the main image of the deity in the sanctum is lost, stolen or damaged? What could have been the motivating forces for the local population to continue worship to the goddess in this temple? The present paper attempts a biographical sketch of this monument to relate the received evidence to textual injunctions and the iconological programme of the temple in addressing such concerns.
Temple Sponsorship and Money Use in Early Medieval Deccan
Dr Shailendra Bhandare
The early medieval period (c. 600 – 1200 AD) witnessed a tremendous boom in temple construction all over the Deccan. Imperial and feudatory houses such as the Rashtrakutas, the Chalukyas, the Kalachuris, the Shilaharas and the Yadavas patronised varied religious sects and endowed shrines, temples and monasteries. The main source of information are the copper plate charters, which contain a host of information about various modalities of the endowments, a prominent component of which concerns money.
This paper will address select instances of patronage with specific reference to the use of money involved in it, on circulatory and socio-economic trajectories. Emphasis will be placed on references dealing with the instrumentality of money in the enterprise of temple-building - how was money generated, disseminated and deposited to facilitate the construction and management of the temple. It will discuss what sort of coins were in use, how they circulated and what were the dynamics involving the different 'moneyed classes' in terms of using their wealth for temple-building activities.
As a broader historical end-note, the paper will shed light on the prevalent notion of 'paucity of coinage' during the early medieval period.
Welcome Address
Professor Gavin Flood
The Ritual Culture Of Temples And Icons in Jainism
Professor John E. Cort
As part of his mendicant vows, a Jain monk is committed to total non-possession.* He owns nothing. He is dependent upon the laity for even his robes , bowls, staff, and other ritual insignia and paraphernalia. These are, so to speak, "loaned" to him by the laity. In theory he should not ask even for these, and if the laity choose not to provide them, he should do without.
Jain temples are the sites of great wealth and display. Wealthy patrons vie with each other to see who can spend the most money building and renovating the most temples, and in other ways be seen as prominent supporters of Jainism. Jain temples are grand architectural creations, filled with hundreds of carved stone and cast bronze icons. In the Åmbara case, many of these icons are ornamented with expensive gold and jewelry. In both Åmbara and Digambara temples one sees extensive and expensive ornamentation of the temple itself, as it is understood to be the divine palace of the true king of kings, the true lord of lords.
One might expect, therefore, that mendicancy and temples are two discrete realms of Jain practice, with little to connect the two. Surely the ritual, visual, material, and devotional culture of temples and icons is a lay creation, grafted onto an original mendicant, renunciatory core of Jainism.
This is not the case, however. Mendicancy and temples are integrally intertwined, and the resistance to those few instances in Jain history when critics have attempted to uncouple the two indicates just how strong are the ties that bind the two together for the majority of Jains.
In this paper I explore four facets of the mendicant promotion of temples and icons.
1. Some of our earliest evidence of icons in Jainism--and in South Asia in general--comes from Mathura. Most of the many Jina icons from Mathura are inscribed, telling us information about the donor. While in all cases the donor is a layperson--and in this the Mathura Jain evidence differs from the Mathura Buddhist evidence--in almost all cases we also find that a mendicant played an integral in the dedication and installation of the icon.
2. Common to both the Åmbara and Digambara traditions is an ancient conception of mendicant practice as structured around six required daily ritual activities. While five of these--equanimity , veneration of the mendicant superior (vandana), confession (pratikramana), vowed asceticism , and meditative renunciation of the body --are clearly of a more renunciatory, non-material nature, the sixth--veneration of the icons/temples (caitya-vandana) shows that icons and temples are essential to mendicant practice.
3. Ritual manuals for the consecration and installation of icons date only from the medieval period. But they show that mendicants play an essential, in many ways even irreplaceable, role in consecration.
4. Both medieval and contemporary evidence shows that mendicants have frequently promoted the ritual culture of temples and icons to their devotees. Monks preach that building temples and donating icons earns a great store of merit. Monks encourage their lay devotees to restore old and dilapidated temples. Monks organize consecration festivals, and distribute new consecrated icons to many temples as a way of spreading their institutional charisma.
Most accounts of Jainism pay attention largely to Jain asceticism and renunciation. Temples and icons appear largely in the illustrations to the accounts, not in the text. But an accurate portrayal of Jainism needs to keep both mendicants and temples firmly in the centre of focus. Further, that accurate portrayal needs to see how mendicants have been central to the culture of temples and icons, and vice versa.
* While there have always been large numbers of Jain nuns, for the most part they have not played the same role in the ritual culture of temples and icons as monks, and so I intentionally use the male pronoun here.
Related: Jainism, Temple and Text
The Temple in Sanskrit Legal Literature
Professor Patrick Olivelle
This paper will examine the relationship between temples and the ideologies and practices underlying the mainstream of the Brahmanical tradition and the ascetical institutions of ancient India. The "Hindu" temple is a relatively new institution rising in the early centuries of the common era. Brahmanical ritual both in its public and domestic expressions had existed without temples for over a millennium. Ascetic institutions both within and outside the Brahmanical tradition developed in a temple-less religious landscape, and their ideologies were anti-ritual focused on wandering and mental cultivation.
With the development of temple culture within "Hindu" traditions, accommodations and conflicts between the emergent religious culture and the older traditions were bound to occur. Focusing on the textual tradition, this paper will examine some of these conflicts and accommodations.
Related: Dharmasastra, Temple and Text
Absence and Presence: Worshipping the Jina at Ellora
Dr Lisa Nadine Owen
How does one worship a liberated being who is technically inaccessible? This is the fundamental question that I propose to answer within the context of Ellora's Jain cave-temples. In the early ninth through tenth century, temples with shrines containing a life-sized Jina image were hewn out of rock. Among the earliest of these temples is a monument known today as the Chota Kailasa. As its appellation suggests, this temple resembles the site's larger and more famous Kailasanatha temple in terms of its execution, architectural components, and designation of sacred space. Although Ellora's Kailasanatha temple has long been recognized as a divine residence for the Hindu god Shiva, similar ways of looking at the Chota Kailasa and its Jina image have not yet been conducted. One reason for this neglect may be the simple fact that the liberated Jina is not considered to be "present" within the main shrine image and so the temple is not thought of as a "residence" per se. Though this is technically the case, similarities between these two monuments at Ellora, especially in some of their external imagery, suggest more nuanced connections.
In this paper, I examine the similarities and differences between these two monuments and address important issues regarding "absence", "presence" and "residence" in early medieval Hindu and Jain religious art and practice. While I highlight some of the similarities between Hindu and Jain articulations of "presence" at Ellora, I argue that Jain visual expressions of this notion are particular to its own religious tradition. Furthermore, I suggest how conceptions of a Jina's samavasarana (as articulated in Ellora's artistic programs and in Jinasena's Adipurana) might serve as a framework from which to view and understand Ellora's Jain cave-temples as powerful places of "presence" and worship.
Sastra and Prayoga: Building Bridges Between Text and Performance in the Sanskritic Tradition
Professor Mandakranta Bose
While the general interest of this symposium lies in the relationships between temples, architecture, texts and performance, my presentation focuses on the relation between the formal description and analysis of dance and its practice. My discussion draws exclusively upon the primary source material for our knowledge of the performing arts of India, that is, the extensive body of Sanskrit texts on dance, drama and music.
I must also clarify here that I understand the term "dance" as a hybrid performance genre that consists of non-mimetic action, natta, as well as mimetic representation, natya, and narrative action, natya. But let me first try to bring this discussion closer than it might appear to the theme of the temple in the Indian imaginary.
Related: Dance, Temple and Text
Colonial Modernity, Memory and the Devadasi Dance Tradition of the Viralmalai Murukan Temple
Dr Davesh Soneji
Session 20 of the 2007 Shivdasani Conference
Hindu Samnyasins in the Temple Context
Professor T.S. Rukmani
The Hindu temple is a religious site and signifies some ritual activity. The general perception of a samnyasin, on the other hand, is one not associated with ritual activity as that is seen as perpetuating worldly existence or samsara. However since this polarization is not evidenced in real life this is indeed a contested issue and this paper examines how far this relationship of a renouncer with the temples as seen in the world can be justified based on the prescriptions given in ascetic (samnyasa) manuals like the Samnyasa Upanishads, the Yatidharmasamuccaya and Jivanmuktiviveka.
Related: Asceticism, Temple and Text
Seeing the Bhakti Movement
Professor John Stratton Hawley
In this paper, I would propose to ask what we can make of the "bhakti movement" picture, when we look at it more closely. Prioritizing Vaishnavism—the sometimes unspoken point of reference for much "bhakti movement" thinking—I will begin by considering the text usually held to have exerted the greatest force on Hindu bhakti generally, the Bhagavata Purana. Where, if at all, can it be seen in stone? This is the question Dennis Hudson asked of the 8th-century Vaikuntha Perumal temple in Kancipuram, and one that I would also ask about narrative depictions of the life of Krishna as seen on temples throughout India up to ca. 1500. I will also consider the mention of specific temples on the part of the Alvars and other Sri Vaisnava Tamil poets.
That would serve as background to my central concern: the striking absence—or at least paucity—of such references in the Vaishnava bhakti poetry that emerged in Hindi beginning in the 15th century. Why and how is this so? What about the depiction of certain poets as having taken their inspiration from particular images of Krishna? What about the visual record that was created as Brindavan and Braj came to be constructed in the 16th century? Is this "built bhakti"? How does it relate to the official hostility to temple-building that is enshrined in the theology of the Vallabha Sampraday? And how does it relate to a broader spectrum of "vulgate Vaishnavism" in roughly the same period that would take account of poets such as Kabir? Certainly Kabir is firmly ensconced in every influential "bhakti movement" narrative, but can he be associated in any way with a built canon?
Related: Bhakti, Temple and Text
Performing Konarak, Performing Hirapur
Dr Alessandra Lopez y Royo
My paper will consider the relationship of dance, in this case, Odissi, and archaeology, here represented by the two archaeological temple sites of Konarak and Hirapur, in Orissa, where the dance performance I will be discussing was filmed. What is foregrounded here is the use we make of archaeological sites and of dance performance in our project of re-imagining history and re-imagining the past.
Odissi is one of the recognised classical dances of contemporary India, said to have originated from the ritualistic and age old dance and singing practices of the maharis (temple dancers), attached to the temple of Lord Jagannath at Puri until as late as the early 1960s. The history of Odissi is however complex. It really evolved from the 1940s theatre performances of Cuttack, in Orissa, and it incorporated different performance streams. Turning Odissi into a classical dance form was not a unique phenomenon, it was part of a broader process of classicization and concomitant modernization of Indian dance, of which Odissi was only a chapter. There are different forms of Odissi, some of which are regarded as 'transgressive' – by which I mean transgressive of its reconstituted canon - and to a great extent are seen as antagonistic to the very principles of classicism invoked for Odissi as a form, such as the softness and femininity of the dance.
One of such transgressive forms is the Odissi reimagined by Guru Surendranath Jena. I was intrigued by the way he had reimagined Odissi out of his engagement with two temple sites which seem to have sustained the whole of his choreographic output: the Sun Temple at Konarak, a temple complex which is now an archaeological park, and the sixty-four yogini temple at Hirapur. The relationship with Konarak helps to situate Guru Jena's dance making within the contemporary Indian classical dance discourse but the Hirapur connection has a peculiarity of its own and it is the performance filmed at Hirapur that I interpret as being of major significance. I asked Guru Jena's eldest daughter, Pratibha, to perform there the dance piece inspired by the site, the 'Sakti Rupa Yogini'. To witness that performance was an extraordinary experience, which opens up a new understanding of the relationship between dance in India and Indian temples, going beyond stereotypical notions of sculpturesque poses. What we see in the film shows how through the choreography the site is animated, breathing life into the imagery of the powerful yoginis, reactivating the defunct practices of worship of their ancient cults. The dance performance, which took place at Hirapur was not an established ritual nor a locally recognized performative tradition; informed by the synchretic vision of the choreographer, Guru Surendranath Jena it resonated with the local villagers. What comes out of this film is the idea that choreographed movement seems to be vital to imagine the mobile forces that were at work at archaeological sites such as Hirapur, rendered still and turned into an artefact in the present – such sites, it should be noted, are not officially in worship. Taking dance to Hirapur has showed that opening sites up to performers might be yet a further way to contextualise humanity: far from suggesting re-enactments, I am envisaging the use of choreography and performance as an interpretive tool, conducive to an intellectual, aesthetic and emotional engagement with the archaeological site. The project of re-imagining from the perspective of today enriches our lives by suggesting alternative ways of conceptualizing the place of art and life activity in society and the relationship between them, avoiding the projection of the past as an immobile moment.
Temple Texts and Cultural Performances in South Asia
Dr Avanthi Meduri
This paper will discuss the centrality of the temple text in the classical arts of South Asia, and focus specifically on the aesthetic vision of the late Dr. Rukmini Devi Arundale, the celebrated revivalist of twentieth- century Bharatanatyam. For her debut recital of Bharatanatyam in 1935, Rukmini Devi allegorized the Hindu temple where the dance had been performed, prior to the articulation of the Anti-Nautch Social Reform movement of the 1890s, transformed it into a theatrical backdrop, and used it as a stage prop to present her Bharatanatyam recital. In her subsequent performances, Rukmini Devi staged the icon of Nataraja on one side of her temple stage, and seated her guru on the other. In this way, Devi created a three-pronged, god, guru and temple stage setting for twentieth-century Bharatnatyam, worked within this symbolic stage setting for over fifty years, and constituted a modern temple, and guru-based history, aesthetics and epistemology for classical Bharatanatyam.
Although Rukmini Devi celebrated the temple history of the dance, she was aware that Bharatanatyam was reconstituted as a concert form in the nineteenth century cosmopolitan courts of King Serfoji 11 (1798-1832). Yet this court-based renaissance of the arts was perceived as being compromised by virtue of King Serfoji's subordinate status as an English educated vassal king of the Empire, and also his desire to hybridize Indian culture by combining the best of Western learning with the best of Indian traditions. Native devadasis, besides, were also sexualized and demonized as temple-dancers and temple-prostitutes in the courts of King Serfoji.
Rukmini Devi manoeuvred the twentieth century dance revival by selectively decontextualizing the court dance and idealizing it not as a feudal dance, but rather as a temple dance. Taking her cue from V. Raghavan, the eminent Sanskrit scholar of Indian performing arts, Rukmini Devi suggested that Bharatanatyam could be traced back to the textual tenets of the ancient Natyasastra, and thus proposed an alternative Sanskrit based history, and identity for Bharatanatyam. Like Raghavan, she celebrated the hereditary guru as symbol of Indian Tradition and plotted an anthropological, regional history for the dance. She then argued that both the marga (Sanskritic) and desi (regional) streams combined in the repertoire of Bharatanatyam, and were preserved in the temple traditions of the dance. Eminent performing arts scholars including A.K Commaraswamy, V. Raghavan and Kapila Vatsyayan endorsed Devi's desi/margi conceptualization, and affirmed the centrality of the temple in the historical imaginary of Indian classical arts. Scholars and dancers thus crafted a selective, marga/desi temple-based history, aesthetics and ontology for Bharatanatyam, and this double aesthetic prevailed in the practice of Bharatanatyam until the demise of Rukmini Devi in the 1980s.
Recent critiques, however, have questioned the Orientalist assumptions inhering in Rukmini Devi's Bharatanatyam revival. But few have gone beyond this critique to grasp the interconnections between social dramas of British colonialism and socio-cultural performances such as Bharatanatyam that emerged from these dramas. Drawing on Victor Turner and Milton Singer's theories of Social Dramas and Cultural performances, I will track the overlapping connections between British Social dramas and Indian cultural performances. My aim is to explore the redemptive dimensions of the temple-stage, and to show how it helped rescue from historical oblivion the ritual based traditions of Bharatanatyam, while also enabling the articulation of an alternative theory of expressivity based on bakthi for Bharatanatyam.
The Dance Performed by the Temple: the Dynamics of Hindu Temple Architecture
Telling the World: Exploring the Cultural and Intellectual Agenda of the Sanskrit Mahabharata
Majewski Lecture
Dr James Hegarty
In this lecture, I explore the form and function of the Sanskrit Mahabharata. I take up features of its design, its explicit statements about itself and its most prominent themes in order to make some suggestions as to what the Mahabharata sought to do, culturally and intellectually,in early South Asian society. I combine this with an analysis of the presence of the Mahabharata in select literary and epigraphical sources of the first millennium in order to explore the impact of the text from Guptan north India to Kerala and Kashmir. These investigations will be combined with a broader discussion of the role of narrative in the transmission and adaptation of understandings of past, place and preferred ideology within, and potentially beyond, South Asia.
Dr James Hegarty is Senior Lecturer in Indian Religions at Cardiff University. His primary research interest is in the role of religious narrative in the cultural and intellectual history of South Asia. He has published numerous papers on Sanskrit and vernacular narrative materials. His monograph Religion, Narrative and Public Imagination: Past and Place in the Sanskrit Mahabharata is forthcoming with Routledge.


Beartoe has been writing, performing and touring from The Historical DeLand florida for over 10 years. First, in college under the band name Attic, then as Dish, a brother duo that found them with L.A. session players Jen Condos and Jay Bellerose.
Beartoe's current project has no doubt shown introspection, but has brought together a sound thats been filtered through the roots and rich history of Florida folk, delta blues and soul with players Brian Chodorcoff, Nadeem Khan and Allen Cowart adding to that history.
Cat Ridgeway, a 19 year-old singer/songwriter hailing from Orlando, Florida, has been performing and composing from the age of eight. A skilled lyricist and melodist, Cat's eclectic style shines through her ability to play guitar and harmonica (at the same time!), trumpet, trombone, drums, piano, and bass - though only taking formal lessons for the trumpet.
Cat has worked and continues to work with several producers, including Greg Rike of Orlando, FL (Producer of Deep Purple and The Back Street Boys) and most recently, Ben Cooper of Nashville, TN. She has had the privilege of opening for national acts including Dia Frampton (1st season of The Voice), Bill Payne (Little Feat), Marty Balin (Jefferson Airplane/Starship), and the Hoppen Brothers of Orleans.
Cat's most recent project "Passenger Seat", recorded and partially written in Nashville, is a direct result of her overfunded Kickstarter campaign "Cat Goes to Nashville". She had the privilege of working with the likes of Gordon Kennedy (co-writer of "Change the World" which Eric Clapton made famous) and many other seasoned Nashville players. Cat's debut album "On a Windy Day" was recorded at the Music Lab located in Orlando, Florida. (Fun fact! The title track was written for the Movie "Bernie" starring Jack Black, Shirley Maclaine, and Matthew McConaughey... sadly, it didn't make the final cut - still super cool, though!). Following this release, Cat has lent her voice to some notable causes. She has performed with Tunes for Tots, which produces musical events that benefit many children's charities such as Make A Wish Foundation. She also recently wrote, produced, and recorded the theme song for the soon to be released video for "Camp Healing Hearts", Hospice of the Comforter's new children's bereavement camp.
Cat strongly believes that she has the most supportive family and friends. Words cannot express how much she appreciates them and every person who has helped her along her way. From the bottom of her heart, she sincerely thanks you for your support.


text:
Q: Error when adding error message to offset cell I have a macro that looks up a list of IDs and compares them against another list in another tab. I would like to print the error message ", Payer Id is not setup" into column A and add it to whatever is already in that cell.
I am getting an error message "object required" on the "a.offset(0,-1) = cell.offset......." line.

    Application.ScreenUpdating = False
    Set A = Range("B2")

    Do Until IsEmpty(A)

        Set B = Worksheets("payorTab").Range("A4")
        Do Until B.Value = A.Value Or IsEmpty(B)
            Set B = B.Offset(1, 0)
        Loop
        If IsEmpty(B) Then
            A.Offset(0, -1) = cell.Offset(0, -1).Value & ", Payer ID is not setup"
        End If

        Set A = A.Offset(1, 0)
    Loop
Application.ScreenUpdating = True
End Sub

I would like the error message to concatenate to whatever is already in the cell in column A.

redpajama_set_name: RedPajamaStackExchange


text:
Q: How can I extract filesystem from vdi I am trying to build linux from scratch. I ll install it into virtualbox. Later I want to extract ext2 filesystem in it. Is it possible?
EDIT: I want to extract root.ext2 filesystem in vdi, to mount it in Ubuntu desktop environment and chroot into it.
EDIT2: moderators marked my topic as duplicate but it's not duplicate of above mentioned topic at all.
I found complete answer of my question. I post the link as a reference to people who seek the same answer:
http://www.turnkeylinux.org/blog/convert-vm-iso

A: I have not tried it, but these could be the steps:

*

*map a host folder as shared folder in virtual box machine.

*use dd command from within the vm to raw copy the vm disk to a file in the
shared folder.

*use the raw file and dd to write it to a real hardisk.

*use something like gparted to strech the partition to the harddisk length, if not same size.

*boot for that partition and see it if works.

A: If your VDI is of type static then you can use a loop mount to mount the VDI in your host using ntfs-3g and just accesses it like any other file system.
If it is a dynamic VDI then you can create a temporary VM using a liveCD. Then temporarily release your VDI from your XP VM and assign it to this VM. When you boot the live CD you can then open a command shell and do
    sudo -i
mkidir /xp
mount -t ntfs3g /dev/hda1 /xp
cd /xp
#You can now access and edit the XP VDI

If you want to move files to and from the host, there are various ways: e.g. a second static VDI which you can then loop mount on your host; good old ftp ...


text:
Aion Flying Free: F2P From February
News by John Walker Disposable
The next MMO making its inevitable way to being free-to-play is NCsoft's Aion, the flying game that does its best to never let you fly. Come next February and you'll not need to pay to get into the game, via the powers of Gameforge. This is, say Eurogamer, NCsoft's plan to "boost player numbers in Europe". In other words, people aren't playing the disappointing Western incarnation of the MMO, and they want to reawaken the servers. And this is a long-proven method.
Of course, there's no such thing a free launch, and there will be opportunities to pay for things. For instance, there's a Gold Package which will secure you everything in the game, along with "bonuses". In other words, you'll level faster, as well as have shorter queues for instances and better loot. But they promise these are only time saving measures, and won't imbalance things.
Those who already had subs will become Veterans, even if their sub already expired. You'll get the whole game, forever, just for having ever subbed. Not bad.
In fact, non-payers will have all classes, areas, quests, equipment, individualisations, professions and PvP. So what don't you get?
"To protect our players against bots and gold sellers, several game options such as chat and trading will be restricted for starters."
Other than that, it really does just seem to be a slower XP climb. People who've already paid beyond February will be refunded, so it's worth chucking in any pre-paid codes you may have now, as they'll be useless after the switch from NCsoft to Gameforge.
Unfortunately the idiotholes have put their promotional advertising trailer for this news on their site in an unembeddable format.
Once one of the original co-founders of Rock Paper Shotgun, they killed me out of jealousy. I now run buried-treasure.org


text:
October 9, 2013: Legends of the Fall: The Body and Stand By Me
[As the leaf-peeping begins in earnest (seriously, that's a thing we do here in New England), a series on some iconic American images of the loss of innocence that we so often associate with autumn. Add your thoughts on falls, seasonal or symbolic, for me to harvest for the weekend post!]
On the novella that's explicitly about the "fall from innocence," and the film adaptation that's less so.
In 1982, frustrated by his inability to publish works that weren't part of the horror genre in which he had risen to fame, Steven King decided to release four such novellas as one collection, Different Seasons, with each novella linked to one of the four seasons. The most famous, thanks to its cult classic film adaptation, is almost certainly the collection's first piece, Rita Hayworth and the Shawshank Redemption (seasonal subtitle: Hope Springs Eternal). But nearly as well-known, thanks in large measure to its own popular film adaptation Stand By Me (1986), is the collection's third piece, The Body (seasonal subtitle: Fall from Innocence). (The collection's summer novella, Apt Pupil: Summer of Corruption, has also been made into a recent film, and is, in its portrayal of a teenage boy corrupted by a former Nazi war criminal, a candidate for this week's series in its own right.)
On the surface, The Body and Stand By Me are almost identical: in each forty-something novelist Gordie Lachance narrates the story of a teenage adventure with his three best friends, a trip that the four boys take after hearing about a dead body out in the woods near their hometown. Moreover, each ends with (among other things) Gordie informing the audience that his best best friend, Chris Chambers, worked his way out of a poor and violent upbringing to reach college and law school, only to die in a random and tragic stabbing, a detail that certainly symbolizes the loss of childhood innocence as the protagonists move into the often brutal and cold adult world. Yet the change in title from the novella to the film illustrates a broader thematic shift: Rob Reiner's movie is far more centrally concerned with the camaraderie and joys of teenage friendship (its last line is "I never had any friends like the ones I had when I was twelve. Jesus, does anyone?", which appears in the middle of King's book and is thus emphasized far more in the film); while King's novella depicts the world's brutalities much more consistently, including a savage beating that all four boys receive at the hands of an older brother and his friends.
Which is to say, at the risk of oversimplifying the two works, Reiner's film is ultimately pretty nostalgic about the world of childhood, while King's novella complicates and to my mind ultimately rejects that kind of nostalgia. Concurrently, the two could be read as depicting the loss of innocence in very different ways: Reiner's film portraying it as a moment of genuine shift, from one kind of life and world to another; and King's as more of a realization about the darkness of the world we have always inhabited, even as young people. I think there's a place in our narratives and images for both stories, and that they complement each other nicely; but I also think that King's story is a bit truer to the world of young adulthood, which while certainly free of various adult responsibilities and pressures can still be (as the Knowles and Cormier books from Monday's post illustrate) as fraught and perilous as the darkest realities of adult life.
Next fall tomorrow,
PS. What do you think? Images of fall, or The Fall, you'd share?
Labels: Literary works, Movies/Music/TV/Art
Dan Sheppard October 10, 2013 at 4:45 PM
Two groups of kids in literature have always represented the fall season for me, most likely because I have fond memories of exploring the neighborhood during the beginning months of school, in the fall, as a child with my friends. Coincidentally, one group of them being the kids you mentioned from The Body, the other being a similar group of boys in a much more paranormal situation in "It". I think the parallels between them regarding a loss of innocence are relatively clear. The situations they encounter are wildly different, but both involve them dealing with as you put, perilous situations, not only of the physical realm, but of the mental realm. How are young people expected to cope with what they're seeing in these stories? It is a total loss of innocence, regardless of the completely unreal events of one story.
So while the loss of innocence is more predominant in a literature sense, the feeling of a close knit group of friends literally reminds me of the fall months. I'm enjoying this group of postings solely based on that, it's a deep look something I always looked at so simply.
AmericanStudier October 10, 2013 at 4:55 PM
Great stuff, Dan, thanks! I'll add that into the weekend post as well,
October 31, 2013: Symbolic Scares: The Lost Boys
October 30, 2013: Symbolic Scares: Last House on t...
October 29, 2013: Symbolic Scares: Sleepy Hollow
October 28, 2013: Symbolic Scares: The Wendigo
October 26-27, 2013: Book Talks to Come
October 25, 2013: Book Talk Thoughts: Next up, San...
October 24, 2013: Book Talk Thoughts: Harrisburg
October 23, 2013: Book Talk Thoughts: URI Diversit...
October 22, 2013: Book Talk Thoughts: U of Maine
October 21, 2013: Book Talk Thoughts: MOCA
October 19-20, 2013: Northeast MLA Excitement!
October 18, 2013: John Sayles' America: Five Runne...
October 17, 2013: John Sayles' America: Passion an...
October 16, 2013: John Sayles' America: Matewan an...
October 15, 2013: John Sayles' America: Brother an...
October 14, 2013: John Sayles' America: Secaucus a...
October 12-13, 2013: Crowd-sourced Falls
October 11, 2013: Legends of the Fall: American Pie
October 10, 2013: Legends of the Fall: Presumed In...
October 9, 2013: Legends of the Fall: The Body and...
October 8, 2013: Legends of the Fall: American Pas...
October 7, 2013: Legends of the Fall: Young Adult Lit
October 5-6, 2013: What's Next for NEASA
October 4, 2013: NEASA Conference Follow Ups: Plenary
October 3, 2013: NEASA Conference Follow Ups: MacF...
October 2, 2013: NEASA Conference Follow Ups: Dive...
October 1, 2013: NEASA Conference Follow Ups: The ...


Please see Part 1 of this article to learn more about the natural history of the Mudpuppy or Waterdog (Necturus maculosus), one of the world's largest salamanders.
A Mudpuppy (Necturus maculosus) was the first large aquatic salamander I kept in captivity, and I remain as intrigued by them today as I was in childhood. Increasingly rare in the wild, Mudpuppies or Waterdogs make quite hearty captives if attention is given to their unique needs. Today we'll take a peek at their lives in the wild, and move on to husbandry in Part 2.


text:
package edu.wustl.common.util.dbManager;

import java.io.BufferedInputStream;
import java.io.File;
import java.io.FileInputStream;
import java.io.IOException;
import java.util.Properties;

import org.hibernate.HibernateException;
import org.hibernate.cfg.Configuration;
import org.hibernate.tool.hbm2ddl.SchemaExport;

/*
 * Created on Feb 20, 2004
 *
 * To change the template for this generated file go to
 * Window - Preferences - Java - Code Generation - Code and Comments
 */

/**
 * @author kapil_kaveeshwar
 *
 * To change the template for this generated type comment go to
 * Window - Preferences - Java - Code Generation - Code and Comments
 */
public class GenerateSchema
{
	public static void main(String[] args) throws HibernateException , IOException, Exception
	{
		boolean isToPrintOnConsole = false;
		boolean isToExecuteOnDB = false;
		if(args.length!=0)
		{
			String arg = args[0];
			if(arg.equalsIgnoreCase("true"))
			{
				isToPrintOnConsole = true;
				isToExecuteOnDB = true;
			}
			if(arg.equalsIgnoreCase("false"))
			{
				isToPrintOnConsole = false;
				isToExecuteOnDB = false;
			}
		}

		File file = new File("db.properties");
		BufferedInputStream stram = new BufferedInputStream(new FileInputStream(file));
		Properties p = new Properties();
		p.load(stram);
		stram.close();

		Configuration cfg = new Configuration();
		cfg.setProperties(p);
		cfg.addDirectory(new File("./src"));
		new SchemaExport(cfg).setOutputFile("query.sql").setDelimiter(";").create(isToPrintOnConsole, isToExecuteOnDB);
//		if(isToExecuteOnDB)
//			new GenerateUser();
	}
}

redpajama_set_name: RedPajamaGithub


text:
Pond: Whatever happens this season has been unbelievable
Skipper preview final match of regular season
Nathan Pond has hailed this season as 'unbelievable' ahead of Sunday's Sky Bet League One fixture with Port Vale at Highbury.
Town's captain has played in eight different divisions with the Cod Army – a world record – and that could be extended if results go the way of Uwe Rosler's side on Sunday.
A win for Town and a defeat for Bolton at home to Peterborough would see Fleetwood promoted to English football's second tier.
"Since I've been here I have achieved so much and have loved every minute," said Pond.
"This season especially is a highlight for me as we had that unbeaten run.
"To do that in this league is huge and to possibly end the season with automatic promotion is unbelievable."
Port Vale did pick up the three points in the reverse fixture earlier in the season, and Pond is aware of how difficult the match will be.
"It will be a tough game on Sunday," added the 31-year-old.
"Both teams are looking for a win and that creates a really exciting atmosphere.
"We know our fans will turn up in numbers and we hope to make them proud by getting the three points this Sunday."
"We now have a fantastic stadium and unbelievable training facilities, we used to train in the local park and now we have Poolfoot which is fantastic.
"He [Andy Pilley] has done so much for the team over the years so we all hope to repay him by getting promoted to the Championship, mixing it with big teams that have premiership experience and hopefully proving we can compete."


text:
Book Review: Being Alert! by Charlie Laidlaw
joyfulantidotes November 25, 2020 Satire
How was the UK Government's handling of the COVID-19 pandemic? Ridiculous enough to be made into a satire? Yup!
Being Alert! by Charlie Laidlaw
Being Alert! begins in January 2020 as the British prime minister, Winston Spragg, first learns about a new illness that seems to be centred in a city in China that nobody has heard of.
Following in a long tradition of British satire, the book populates Downing Street and Whitehall with an inept prime minister presiding over a dysfunctional government as it deals with an existential threat that rapidly becomes a national crisis.
Like satires before it, the book uses humour to paint an uncomfortable picture of a government seemingly as concerned about justifying itself as working to protect the country.
Being Alert! is a fun yet thought-provoking book. It really gets us thinking about how the government handled the outbreak of COVID-19 and the proceeding months. Badly. Really, if you were reading this book without any concept of what was happening in the real-world, you would take it for pure fiction. OK, while the conversations between officials are fictionalized, these were the actual decisions they made in real-life.
At the beginning of every major turn in the book, the author puts in actual facts regarding how COVID-19 was playing out at the time. It really exemplifies just how dire the situation was, and the perception people had of the government being inapt. What makes it even sadder is we can immediately pinpoint whom each character is supposed to be portraying without much information at all. For that, that exemplifies how much of a joke certain members of the UK Government became during this time.
Overall, Being Alert! is a bit of a laugh during these bleak times – and by that I mean a laugh at government officials. In no way does the author make a mockery of the pandemic and the people who died as a result. In fact, this book shows just how series everything was – and still is.
If Being Alert! sounds interesting to you, it is available to buy now.
Being Alert!, Book Review, Charlie Laidlaw, Satire
Previous Book Review: Everyone Dies Famous by Len Joy
Next Book Extract: Ripples From The Edge of Life by Roland Chesters


Like the guards at Buckingham Palace, you have been given an important assignment – to stand guard of your writing time. For if you are called to write for ministry, the time spent writing is work God has assigned you to do for his kingdom. The time spent writing is time where you'll write to offer inspiration, hope, encouragement, comfort, and healing.
But watch out! For just as the guards at Buckingham Palace are bombarded with distractions to keep them from their duty to protect the queen, you'll be bombarded with distractions designed to keep you from writing. How can you overcome these distractions?
By tapping into your power within. For as the soldier taps into the inner discipline he has acquired through his soldier training, you have an inner power that was given to you when you became a Christian called the Holy Spirit. As you draw strength from within, it will help you overcome your distractions.
Christian writer, what are you doing today to stand guard of your writing time?
Responding to God's call to write: How are you guarding your writing time? Post your comments on my blog. I enjoy hearing from you!
Those given the charge to write for ministry must demonstrate their calling by their actions. For example, Noah, being warned of God that he would destroy the world, acted by preparing an ark to save his family. Abraham, when told he would be the Father of a great nation, acted by packing up his belongings to move to a foreign land. And Rahab, after being told her city would be destroyed by the Israelite army, acted by gathering all of her family under her roof, and hanging a scarlet cord from a window.
Your actions as an aspiring author demonstrate your faith in what God has called you to do. So if there is a book within you God is calling you to write, seek help if needed on how to begin your writing journey. Then get moving!
Responding to the call to write for ministry: How will you show by your actions today that you really want to write for ministry? Post your comments on my blog. I enjoy hearing from you.
Need help getting started? Contact me for a writing consultation.


text:
45-year-old who mobilised farmers from 40 villages dies in accident on way to Delhi
Indian Express 11/27/2020
Dhanna Singh (45), a resident of Khiyali Chehlan Wali village of Mansa district, died when a tractor-trolley he was travelling in was hit from behind in Mundhal village of Bhiwani district by a truck.
Dhanna Singh
In days leading up to the Delhi Chalo protest, Dhanna Singh (45) had mobilised farmers from over 40 villages to join the protest. On Friday, his march to the national capital was cut short by an accident that claimed his life on the Bhiwani-Delhi highway. Two farmers accompanying him were injured in the accident.
Dhanna Singh (45), a resident of Khiyali Chehlan Wali village of Mansa district, died when a tractor-trolley he was travelling in was hit from behind in Mundhal village of Bhiwani district by a truck. "Baljinder Singh in his mid-twenties was driving the tractor, while Dhanna and Gora Singh (38) were sitting on both sides. Around 25-30 villagers were sitting inside that trolley when in the wee hours, a truck hit the vehicle from behind due to which he fell on and the tyre of tractor that crushed him. The other two villagers also fell, but they sustained injuries and were taken to a hospital in Bhiwani itself," said Bikar Singh, who was inside the trolley at that time.
After Dhanna was declared dead at 8 am, farmers staged a dharna on the highway for over an hour demanding 20 lakh compensation, loan waiver and job for the next of kin of the deceased farmer. The driver of the truck was booked and arrested. After this, farmers decided to continue their march to Delhi, while Dhanna's body was sent back along with few villagers of Khiyali Chehlan Wali.
Dhanna Singh was cremated Friday evening.
Buta Singh Burjgill, president of BKU (Dakaunda), said, "There were stones and mud lying on the road at different locations of the highway and this was the reason that 3 of them were sitting in front to locate stones and clear them. Stones were placed at the accident spot too. Hence, administration is also equally responsible for this incident." Gora Singh, who had sustained minor injuries, marched ahead with the convoy, while Baljinder was admitted in hospital and the tractor was damaged badly. Two farmers from morcha came back with the body and after the cremation went back to join the march.
His wife, Jaspal Kaur, daughter Sukhdeep Kaur (16) and 13-year-old son, Harvinder Singh, were in a state of shock after this incident. They were not informed about the incident till the time it was decided to send the body back home, said Baljinder Singh, a close friend of Dhanna Singh.
Baljinder said, "H e used to make announcements from gurdwara everyday about this programme and was upset about the farm bills as well."
"He was a marginal farmer with 2 acres of land and was a granthi in gurdwara as well. Every morning we used to hear his voice on the loudspeaker and these days on farm bills," said Jeon Singh, another villager.